Of Masquerades And Guns
by Eviltiger
Summary: Kurogane Suwa: Tall, dark, handsome. Male. Sakura Kinamoto: Short, fair-skinned, vixen. Female. Common profession: Assassin. In a webbed game of lies and bloodshed invisible strings strangle the pair. Can they break free? Not KuroSaku. BEING REWRITTEN.
1. The Girl and the Man

**Of Masquerades and Guns**

**Chapter One: The Girl and the Man**

**By: Eviltiger**

**Author's Note: NOT KUROSAKU! I HAVE DECIDED TO REVAMP THIS STORY COMPLETELY, SO THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY READ THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS PLEASE FORGET ALL YOU HAVE LEARNED! Thank you.**

**S-T-O-R-Y!**

**ONE POV**

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><p>A lone man walked quickly down a small dark street. Every so often a lamp dotted the otherwise dark road, killing the shadows in that small spot. The man, or Mr. Danrort as he called himself, lingered in the lamp light whenever one illuminated his path, and moved very quickly in the darkness. It would have been quite comical, had the bespectacled man not been gripped by the claws of fear and anxiety. His terror, however, was founded well. Two hours earlier, a note was found on his desk, proclaiming his death.<p>

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><p>Two figures crouched on a rooftop, one figure larger than the other. One was a man, the other a young woman. The man's red eyes flickered lazily down to look at the target below, a sneer growing on his face.<p>

"Look. He runs like a little mouse, scared of the dark. Thinking he's safe as long as light touches him." The man shifted his head slightly to look at the young woman in front of him. "Want me to take care of him?"

The girl looked over at her partner, her jade eyes gleaming in the moonlight. "It's fine. You'd just drag it out, causing a scene."

The man tched before lying down comfortably. Putting his hands up behind his head, he said, "Hurry up then."

Nodding, the girl stood up, as silent as a feather. Then, she walked soundlessly towards the edge of the building, tucked her feet close to her body, and jumped off the edge into the air with her hands out. She flipped in the air several times before landing gracefully in the shadows of an alley that their target had already passed. The man watched, unimpressed by the sudden show of acrobatics.

She had made absolutely no sound upon landing, and still didn't as she moved in the shadows of the dark until she had left the alley and was in the street. Then, the maiden began to silently stalk the target, picking up speed as she kept walking. All the while blood-red eyes calmly observed everything from above.

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><p>Mr. Danrort kept walking at a fast pace, sweat beginning to bead down the man's forehead. While he was slim, the man wasn't one for exercise, and the prolonged running was taking his toll. A little relief shot through the man as he reached another lamplight and the man stood there for a moment, catching his breath. That one stop proved to be fatal for him.<p>

All of a sudden the man heard footsteps approaching him from behind. Mr. Danrort turned quickly, fear shooting through his veins. The footsteps became louder and louder as they closed in on the man, but paralyzed with fear not so much as a hair on his ponytail could move an inch. As the figure finally stepped into the boundary of the light Mr. Danrort gave a tiny sigh of relief.

A girl had stepped out of the shadows, a teenager no older than 18. She had short auburn hair that fell to mid-neck, save for two long strands of hair falling to her shoulders. She wore a simple street garb that consisted of a light leather jacket, jeans, and black boots. Her peach skin was illuminated under the light, giving it a delicate look. The man was about to smile and talk to her, when he noticed her eyes.

The girl's eyes were a beautiful jade green, but that wasn't what Mr. Danrort was concerned about. It was the utter devoid of emotion in those eyes, the complete look of empathy that startled him. Taking just a tiny step back the man's fear suddenly heightened as he noticed that the teenager had never stopped walking at her fast pace, merely going straight ahead towards her destination: Him. Taking another few steps backward Mr. Danrort began to feel panic shoot through his veins, and he put up his arms, not quite sure why.

"H-Hey." The man said feebly, still walking backwards. The girl said nothing and simply walked faster to the man. "Hey!" The footsteps grew louder. "HE-" The man's last shout was cut off as the girl drove the poisoned needle she had been hiding in her hand straight into his throat exactly at the spot where she had intended, not a centimeter off.

The needle had killed the man in a way that was quick, silent, and left no blood. Stepping back she watched emotionlessly as the formerly alive man hit the sidewalk with a sickening _thunk_. She was efficient, a killing machine. There was no room for emotion. Crouching down near the body the girl removed the needle and slipped her thin hand into the man's coat, retrieving a brown package tightly wrapped in string. Mr. _Rondart_ (as this was his true name) would never breathe again, and what was requested had been taken. The job was done.

Moments later the man with her earlier appeared from the shadows in front of the teenager. He had jumped down from the building and had been waiting in the shadows until she was finished. He was a stunning man around his twenties, with spiky black hair, crimson red eyes, and tan skin. He was very tall, and wore a long black coat that went to his feet and had a collar that was unfolded.

"You got it?" He asked the female in a deep voice. The girl looked at him with a steady gaze, replying,

"Of course I did. It what we're trained to do."

The man nodded, and looked around, surveying the surroundings.

"Let's get going, someone probably heard the racket that mouse made." The girl nodded, rubbing her hair tiredly.

"Right. Let's go." She started walking away from the body, knowing that even if it _was_ found by the police they wouldn't be able to trace the crime back to her. The tall man looked down at the body once more before following the jade eyed girl. Catching up to the teenager in a few steps the man reached out and gently tousled the girl's hair.

The girl looked up, surprised for a moment, before her a ghost of a smile was seen in her eyes. For a moment the girl didn't do anything, allowing the small comfort, before her eyes steeled once more. The teenager removed his hand from her head, and began walking forward once more, her eyes towards the ground. Before she had taken the man's hand off her head the girl had spoken, as if answering an unspoken question.

"I'm fine."

The girl and man lived inside an old, abandoned, yet functional apartment building. The girl came out of the bathroom in the apartment and sank into a broken sofa that gave a squeak when she landed on it. Her auburn hair glistened with water droplets, while she gazed out of the taped up window. Her stormy jade green eyes took in every detail, from the tall buildings outside the window to the fist-sized stain near the edge of single rug on the otherwise bare floorboards of the room.

Even in their home she was armed. The belt on her pants had a gun attached, while her lace-up black boots held countless numbers of needles in easily reachable yet safe places. Three different poisons along with their antidotes sat gleaming secretly in a hidden drawer of a small cabinet, while most of the place was rigged with traps as well.

Her partner sat at the other end of the room, gun lying peacefully next to his side, while most of him was concealed completely in shadow. Standing up the man walked over to the girl. The moonlight showed that he had taken of the coat and he wore a simple white shirt with an unfolded collar. He had on jeans that stopped at the top of the barefoot toes. He looked down at the girl and said three words.

"Sleep. My watch."

The girl frowned slightly, and protested.

"I'm fine Kurogane; you've been keeping watch a lot." Kurogane rolled his eyes and picked up a blanket sitting haplessly on a chair. The girl had been about to continue protesting when said blanket hit her square in the face, although not with too much force.

"Night, Sakura." Was all the man said, and the discussion was over.

Sakura watched the man as he sat down once more over at the other side of the room, before the calling of sleep made her eyelids drag over her eyes. Giving up, Sakura pulled the covers over her, and murmured a quiet good-night, before sleep consumed her.

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><p>It was several hours later when the nightmare started. Kurogane sighed as he heard the girl whimper and toss slightly on the sofa. His brows furrowed he looked over at the girl before standing up and walking over to Sakura. It was no doubt the same nightmare as usual. The one about <em>him<em>.

The younger one in the room cried out and Kurogane's gaze slightly. The man reluctantly reached over to the shivering Sakura who had curled herself tightly into a small ball and pressed a pressure point in the back of her head. She would feel that tomorrow. Immediately the teenager went limp, though, and the only movement she made now was the rise and fall of her chest.

Frustration gnawed at the man as he looked down at the girl. She didn't deserve this. Her parents had abandoned her when she was seven, and was found by eighteen-year-old-at-the-time Kurogane. Together they led a life of crime, stealing, scavenging, and doing "jobs" for the agency that taught them how to survive. _They_ had taught them how to live and kill, and the two killed for them. It was as simple as that.

Kurogane was a merciless killer. He could also be the best protector when he needed to be. He never heard the cries of his victims echoing in his head, was never chased by them in his dreams. But Sakura was different. She was too pure, too kind for this work. She remembered every voice she silenced. Every person she finished off would come back to haunt her in her dreams. Their cries would echo in her head. Especially_ his_.

Kurogane sighed once more and looked out the broken window with moonlight streaming through. She really deserved better. She deserved freedom, and Sakura was going to get it. If she could manage to wait a little longer.

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><p><strong>Elsewhere<strong>

_**BANG! BANG! BANG!**_** The cloaked figure holding the still smoking gun lowered it and looked at the target in front of him. There was one hole in the dummy, directly in the middle of the head. The room was empty, save for him, the dummy, the table next to him, and the new presence behind him. The slow, almost bored sounding, clapping of a single person was heard from behind the cloaked figure. A cold smile crept onto the man's face. He didn't need to turn around, he knew who it was.**

"**Excellent shots, sir. Makes a man wonder why you need puppets to do the work you could do yourself." The person from behind him spoke in a bored tone. The cloaked figure smirked slightly, and took a glass of clear liquid into his hands that was sitting on a table nearby. After leisurely taking a sip, he set the glass back down and finally replied.**

"**You know me well enough by now to know that answer already. There is something that I must to, and only by using them will I be able to accomplish it." Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a photo. It had been taken unbeknownst to the person in the picture, but it gave a clear enough view of her.**

"**Don't worry little pawn," The figure said with a dark chuckle, "things are about to get very interesting for you, my dear Sakura."**

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><p><strong>End of Chapter One<strong>

So, did ya like it? I hope I did better this time. I'm removing chapter two since it's going to be completely different, although some parts as you can see, I'm keeping. Thank you for reading!


	2. An Odd Encounter

**Of Masquerades and Guns**

**Chapter Two: An Odd Encounter**

**By: Eviltiger**

**Author's Note: THESE CHAPTERS HAVE BEEN REVISED! If you have read them already before, please reread them since they have been changed. Enjoy! Reviews are very much welcome. Hoo boy… This one changed a **_**lot**_**.**

**HAPPY NEW YEAAAARRRRRRRR!**

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><p>Sunlight streamed through the broken windows of an abandoned apartment. Sakura slowly opened one eye, then the other. Sitting up from the couch she stretched and slowly removed her feet from the blanket that had been placed on her. The back of her head ached slightly. Again. Sakura sighed and looked over at the man sitting at the other side of the room.<p>

Standing up slowly the girl folded the blanket neatly into a square before heading towards the somewhat functioning closet in their small apartment. She didn't particularly mind that the building and everything in it was decrepit however. If anything the teenager actually preferred this sort of living space. While the duo really could have paid for a nice, comfortable house they had decided simply to stick to rundown apartment buildings. These kinds of place gave off a feeling of being old, lasting, durable. Of being unchangeable, and unlikely to be snatched away from her.

Shaking her head the girl wrenched open the door to the closet as quietly as she could before picking out her ensemble from the piles of clothes folded neatly inside. She was thinking nonsense. Pulling out a light purple t-shirt and jean shorts from the area of piles that wasn't for work Sakura headed towards the bathroom to change.

Once out of the bathroom the teenager headed towards the kitchen to prepare breakfast. Opening the storage room the girl looked inside. Moving aside the large rice sack on the floor easily Sakura made a mental note to buy more rice the next time she went out. Pulling out the bread Sakura placed it on the kitchen counter before closing the storage door. After retrieving milk and jam from the refrigerator a light breakfast was made and eaten. Leaving two slices of bread and the jam out on the small table in the kitchen the girl cleaned her dishes and opened the refrigerator door to put the milk back inside.

After stowing the milk away the girl was about to close the door when she noticed the something hidden in the way back of the refrigerator. Sticking her hand in, the girl gently pulled out the small yellow piece of paper and turned it over, finding one side blank. On the other side there was faint, crooked writing:

_Your dress looks beautiful._

Sakura's eyes widened at first in slow recognition, and then horror. The girl could only stare at the single sentence written there, in his handwriting, before everything started to blur. Holding the note tightly the teenager's hand started to shake. She remembered that day. She remembered it all too well.

_For the first time in ages she was nervous. Sweat beaded in her palms. She looked over at him from across the room. She desperately wanted to be next to him, have him look her way, show her a reassuring hand sign, anything! But he couldn't do anything, and neither could she. Suddenly she could feel him begin to walk towards her. She knew that she couldn't acknowledge his presence, but her heart sped up anyway at the thought of him. He passed by without saying a word, she knew he would, and disappointment wormed in her. Such thoughts were quickly banished however, by the slip of paper that had secretly snuck its way into her hand without anyone noticing._

Sakura squeezed her eyes shut. The girl jammed the note into her pocket, and walked out of the kitchen as calmly as she could. Without any thought the girl headed back towards the room where Kurogane was. As she walked in however, she saw the gun glinting on the table. Her gun. Her throat clenched, and the room began to spin. Suddenly it didn't matter anymore. She had to leave. She had to get out.

Grabbing the boots near the sofa Sakura struggled to put them on in her fixated need to get out. Lace-up boots could be incredibly annoying at times. Finally finishing one boot the teenager gave up on the second boot and ended up rushing towards the door with one boot haphazardly tied with the other barely on. Nearing the door the girl had almost left the room when a hand suddenly grabbed her wrist.

Adrenaline shot through the teenager as Sakura whirled around while clenching her free hand to form a fist. That fist would have smashed the attacker's face in had he not caught the free hand quickly in his palm. Looking up with wide eyes Sakura slowly focused in on the face before her, Kurogane's face. He didn't let go of the girl's hands, waiting patiently instead for her to calm down. Sakura breathed in and out, trying to focus in on her boots. After several moments the girl nodded.

"I didn't know you were awake." Or rather, she had completely forgotten about his existence.

Kurogane raised an eyebrow. There was a small pause. The man studied Sakura intently before cutting straight to the point.

"What's wrong?"

Sakura's eyes widened. Focus on the boots, nothing but the boots. Don't meet his eyes.

"…Nothing."

"Bull. You're going outside?"

"Y-Yes."

"_Unarmed?_" There was no need to look at Kurogane's face, all the disbelief was piled into that one word.

The accusation hit her square in the face. She knew Kurogane was right. It was completely idiocy to go outside without at least one weapon. _She _was the one that always insisted to carry something everywhere. But right now… She couldn't face that. She couldn't hold a murder weapon right now.

"I just… wanted to go for a walk…" The excuse sounded pathetic, even to her. Even more than that though, _she_ sounded pathetic. The girl bit her lip in frustration.

Kurogane didn't say anything. They stood there for a while, Sakura all the while feeling the need to leave growing. Suddenly the man sighed.

"Where are you going?"

Surprise made Sakura's eyes widen again. He was letting it slip by?

"To… Market Street, we're low on rice. And the agency." She said, adding that last part in quickly. She was fine. Kurogane had to believe the lie that she was fine.

"We just did a job yesterday. No need." The man's voice was gruff, but the true meaning behind his words still reached Sakura.

The girl bit her lip again, this time harder. Her hesitant reply came a little later, haltering almost as if she was fighting against herself to say it.

"I… I can… just give them a call… and ask them to… drop of this month's work at… the meeting place."

Kurogane studied her for a second or two before the man sighed and let go of his companion. He sat back down and settled back into a more comfortable position before closing his eyes. Sakura watched Kurogane for a moment, before heading towards the door once more. She knew he was still observing her, and thus she forced herself to walk as slow as possible without making it look unnatural. Just as she had finished lacing up her other boot and was unlocking the door Kurogane spoke.

"Don't get lost."

Sakura turned to face the room Kurogane was in, warmth in her eyes.

"...I won't." Unlocking the door Sakura was about to walk out before she paused for a moment.

"Kurogane… Thank you." The girl murmured.

A grunt was the last thing she heard from behind her before Sakura closed the door with a soft click. Looking up, she sighed with relief, as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Closing her eyes, the teenager took a deep breath and walked off away from their small room, for the first time, unarmed.

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><p>Kaede Clow opened her eyes. The trees rustled as the wind whispered between them, and in the distant background children shrieked and laughed with joy. People walked by the park bench she was sitting on, while some sat in other places, but none went over to her. For the moment, that was a good thing. Kaede looked at the scenery around her, admiring its beauty.<p>

Trees were always trees. They never changed because they needed to, never had to disguise themselves. People were in a way like trees. Kaede was not. Her real name was famous in the underworld, almost as famous as her talent for disguises when on jobs that didn't involve "cleaning up". More often than not the moment Kaede left the apartment she would either lose her name or her complexion. She hated it.

A woman approached the teenager sitting on the park bench. Kaede turned to look at the tall female. The woman had straight obsidian hair that fell slightly past her shoulders. A brown pencil skirt and light green cuffed shirt accented the woman's features, while her gray-hazelnut eyes calmly regarded the sitting Kaede. Walking over to the bench the woman sat down next to the teenager, turning to face her.

"Good-day." The woman said politely. While she had no smile on her face, a warm and amicable feel came from the woman.

Kaede nodded in return, and tried to remember the lessons she had been taught on looking friendly.

"Good-morning Ms. Arashi."

"Sakura Kinamoto?"

Kaede shook her head routinely. She knew the precautionary drill.

"Not at the moment. My name is Kaede Clow. Seven needles pierce the bullet."

Arashi didn't look at Kaede, as usual, but smiled before standing up and walking away. After she was long gone Kaede nonchalantly picked up the beige portfolio that had been left behind. Labeled in fine print at the top it read: Sakura Kinamoto and Kurogane Suwa of division one, group three. Month's Assignments.

Rolling the flexible paper and deftly encircling the paper around the inside of her boots as she pretended to retie one of her boots the teenager hid the paper perfectly, before straightening up. With that out of the way, the only thing left to do was to visit Market Street. Kaede hurried away from the meeting place, eager to leave any thoughts of her work behind.

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><p>"Oranges! Oranges for sale!"<p>

"Fish, half priced just for today!"

"Buy two get one free!"

Continuous shouts and busy bustling filled the market, even in the late afternoon. "Market Street" as it was nicknamed was one very long street with tall buildings no citizens lived in, a wide road no cars ever drove down due to the congestion, and was filled to the brim with street vendors and small shops. It had a very Asian feel to it, selling everything from Indian spices to Japanese fish. Market Street was much cheaper than actually going to a supermarket, and there were many items that were hard to come across in regular stores as well, which made it a favorite of most locals.

Walking over to her usual place to buy rice, Kaede approached a dinky, cramped store with no better living conditions than the other small stores of Market Street. Walking into the shop, she passed under a sign with the word _Koryo_, the store's name, written on it. Once in the tiny store she looked around carefully. Spotting the object of her desire, the teenager grabbed a bag marked _Emperor Rice_, and carefully used both arms to lift the heavy object and set it on the counter. Kaede waited for a little bit, and then called out softly,

"Chun'nyan? Are you here?" An immediate response of muffled shouting, clattering came before a high-pitched voice called out,

"Deng yi xia! Deng yi xia! Just a minute!" After several minutes later, a small girl came rushing down the stairs that were behind the counter and gasped for breath slightly while apologizing profusely for not being there before she looked up to see who the customer was. The young girl wasn't older than 10, yet she still ran the store her parents left behind with her weakened grandmother. Smiling slightly after realizing who the customer was, she relaxed and while speaking in heavily accented and broken English.

"Oh, is just you. If know that, I not hurry so!" Chun'nyan teased slightly. Kaede didn't smile, but her eyes reflected amusement. Chun'nyan sighed and shook her head slightly while she began to ring up the bag of rice that Kaede had put on the counter.

"Ai ya, Ka-e-de, you pretty girl, but never smile! -Not good frown all time! Need learn smile!" Kaede flinched upon hearing that, pain flashing across her face. The auburn-haired girl didn't say anything and looked away. Chun'nyan looked at Kaede questioningly, and shook her head once more. Only when the young girl had finished ringing up the rice did she break the silence.

"That 6 dollar. Again come soon!" Kaede nodded, and handed over the money, then left cradling the bag in her right arm and nodded once more as a good-bye to Chun'nyan.

Kaede walked out of _Koryo_ slowly, when she heard loud aggravated shouting coming from nearby. Slightly curious, the girl walked toward the sound of the noise. Drawing closer, she saw the large ugly street vendor who Chun'nyan had picked a fight with more than once. He appeared to be shouting at a man in front of him, who was apologizing over and over. As she kept coming closer, she began to hear the conversation going on.

"You knock over my apple basket! All bad now! No one buy! You must pay for them!" The large street vendor snarled. The other man was a tall blonde with startling blue eyes, who looked around the age of 20. He was smiling with his hands out in front of him, and started to speak,

"I'm incredibly sorry, but I can't pay for all of it. I don't have enough money you see. Is it alright if I only buy half?" A vein bulged on the side of the street vendor's head as he grabbed the blonde by his arm and roared,

"BUY ALL! OR YOU-"

"Excuse me." Both men turned towards the voice in confusion, to see Kaede in front of them. The jade eyed maiden pointed to the apple basket currently on its side with apples everywhere and continued speaking while she walked toward the basket, knelt down, and began to pick up the apples.

"I'd like to buy half of these apples."

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><p>Kaede walked away from the sight of the argument with a bag of rice, half a basket of apples, her roll of dollar bills folded in her pocket weighing less than she had intended beforehand, and a small frown on her face. It had made no sense for her to help that man, yet she had done it impulsively. Such acts weren't good, involuntary actions could cost her if she was on a job. Thinking about work made her head slightly pound however, and deciding to drop the incident the teenager tried to push it as far away from the mind as possible. It seemed that fate wasn't done toying with her though.<p>

"-ait! Hey! Young miss who helped me! Wait!"

Kaede frowned and turned around slowly. Seeing the man from earlier running towards her the jade-eyed girl moved to the side of the road, as to not block anyone's path. Patiently waiting the teenager analyzed the man while he ran towards her. He was in an awful hurry to catch up to her, with his long blond hair being tossed this way and that. Had she left something behind?

Kaede couldn't remember setting anything down while paying the street vendor. It puzzled the girl, so instead of disappearing into the crowd as she normally would have, the teenager waited for the man to see what was so important that he had to catch up to her to do. The man grinned broadly when he caught up to her, and stretched out his hand. Even after running fast for a considerable distance, he hadn't broken out in sweat.

"My name is Fai Fluorite. Thank you for helping me!" He said.

Kaede looked at Fai for a minute; then shifted her load so she could take his hand. She was mildly surprised to find his hand was slender and not much bigger than hers. But then again, it did match his slim and tall figure.

"Kaede Clow. There's no need to thank me." Kaede said politely, waiting for what the man to get to his point.

"I'm really grateful that you saved me back there, I was sure I was done for!" Fai exclaimed, grinning all the while.

Kaede looked away, still wondering why the man was bothering to continue with pleasantries. Why didn't he hurry up and say what he needed to say and be off?

"It was nothing; I was running low on apples." The girl said quickly, the lie coming from her lips before she had processed it.

Fai shrugged and grinned. "Either way you helped me, which I had to say thank you for."

Kaede looked up sharply at the smiling blonde man.

"Th-_That_ was why you ran all so fast to catch up to me?" The teenager stuttered, looking up at the tall man and completely caught off guard.

Fai looked at Kaede as if he was surprised, and cocked his head slightly.

"Of course!"

Kaede stared at the man incredulously for a minute, before blinking several times. This man was undoubtedly one of the strangest people she had ever met.

"I see… Well, good day then…" The maiden mumbled awkwardly and moved to leave the conversation.

"Ah! Wait, I'm in your debt! How can I repay you?" Fai exclaimed following the girl.

Kaede looked back incredulously at the man yet again. Did such people really exist?! Quickening her pace, the girl called out from behind her shoulder,

"You're not, you're fine! There's no need to repay me! HaveanicedayGOODBYE!" And with that broke out into a full blown run, melting into the crowd despite the man's shouts.

Kaede didn't stop running until Market Street was well behind her and the portfolio inside her boot was beginning to chafe the inside of her calf. Slowing down to a brisk walk the girl constantly looked behind her, as if fearing Fai would suddenly jump out of nowhere and surprise her. Breathing heavily Kaede attempted to pat down her wildly swept hair with no avail. This was the first time in years that she had been so flustered. Still breathing slightly heavily the teenager looked behind her one last time before deciding that had been enough excitement for a lifetime, and headed towards her home.

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><p>Closing the wooden apartment door with a resounding click Sakura took a deep breath and inhaled the familiar but delicious aroma coming from the kitchen. Kurogane didn't enjoy cooking, that was for sure, and he didn't look like someone who would enjoy cooking. When his turn to cook came though, there was no denying the man's talent. One wouldn't believe that he was skilled by the look of the food but once the sight was ignored and only the taste was considered the dishes always turned out well.<p>

Taking off her boots slowly and walking into the kitchen, she took the bag of rice and gently placed it in the pantry. The maiden then attempted to appear as normal as possible before heading towards the kitchen. Kurogane was over near the stove, stirring something bubbling and frothing. He nodded to her as a welcome, and Sakura replied with a quiet hello. Kurogane twitched, before turning around slightly to watch Sakura gently set down a bag full of apples on the counter. Feeling his gaze, the teenager looked over to where the tall man was, still taking out apples from the brown paper bag.

"Yes?" The teenager said, looking at her tall partner with emotionless jade eyes.

Kurogane observed the girl for a moment, before answering in what seemed to be a leisurely tone. Sakura however, wasn't fooled.

"Something happen?"

The teenager could hear the caution in Kurogane's voice, his insight never ceasing to amaze the girl. Sakura tipped her head to one side, debating whether the truth was important enough to tell. Finally the girl shrugged.

"Just… Met some weird guy."

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><p><strong>ELSEWHERE<strong>

"**Sir? Are you sure this will all go as proceeded?" The monotone voice asked the cloaked figure, as the screen in front of them froze and zoomed in on Sakura's face. The cloaked figure chuckled darkly, and replied calmly,**

"**The future doesn't lie. Indeed it is true that our dear little Sakura is the deciding factor **_**and**_** the wild card. However, if all goes as it has been planned, there should be no need to worry. Even now events are proceeding just as I thought out." The figure dismissed the person next to him with a simple wave of their hand, never taking its eyes of the frozen screen. After the person had left, the cloaked figure stared at the screen some more, before murmuring to itself,**

"**Yes… just a little longer, and my wishes will come true. The real question is… am I willing to wait that long?" The figure started to laugh after finishing its comment, finding humor in a joke only it understood.**

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><p><strong>End of Chapter Two.<strong>

**ONCE AGAIN THANK YOU FOR READING! And please review!**


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